Monkey News: Rare monkeys airlifted to Britain after being rescued from smugglers

TWO rare monkeys have been airlifted to Britain after being rescued from the horrors of the black market trade in endangered creatures. The white-throated guenons were seized as they were being smuggled out of Africa to the Middle East where they would likely have become fashionable pets.

Two rare monkeys have been airlifted to Britain after being rescued from the black market (Image: MONKEY WORLD)

I am pleased that Monkey World was able to assist the Lebanese government and Animals Lebanon to rescue and rehabilitate these incredibly rare monkeys

Dr Alison Cronin

Vanishing monkeys and apes are becoming targets of hunters who shoot adult animals for “bushmeat” and then steal their orphaned babies from the tropical forests so they can be smuggled overseas as expensive novelties.

Luckily, for guenons Benny and Nia, they were seized by alert Lebanese officials at Beirut Airport before they could be exploited.

Today, the pair, weighing around 8lb, are beginning new lives at Monkey World, the globally famous sanctuary in Dorset that cares for 250 primates, after its director Dr Alison Cronin staged the complex rescue mission.

White-throated guenons are classed as vulnerable on the Red List of endangered species, with populations in the rainforests of Benin and West Nigeria crashing by 50 per cent over the past three decades, largely because of hunting and habitat loss.

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Benny and Nia are the only white-throated guenons outside their natural range and are now gaining weight and improving fitness in a new enclosure, where they are expected to make a full recover after their harrowing ordeal.

They were confiscated in Beirut after being smuggled on a passenger flight from Accra, Ghana, and later cared for by Animals Lebanon before Dr Cronin returned with them on a recent Middle Eastern Airlines flight.

Dr Cronin explained: “As tragic as their story is, Benny and Nia are the lucky ones that have survived and made it to a safe home.

"Most die during the hunt or when they are torn away from their families and forest homes to be smuggled across the globe.

“We cannot give them their natural lives back again, but I am pleased to see that they are enjoying their new home and enclosure and their sad story will hopefully remind people about how important it is to protect endangered species and the habitats which they come from.”

Although the Lebanese authorities only joined the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) five years ago, the country has made made big leaps, introducing animal protection legislation and ensuring police enforce the treaty.

Monkey World has already worked with Lebanese officials to rescue a chimpanzee called Kiki, who was rescued from a residential area in Beirut.

Dr Cronin paid tribute the Lebanese authorities for its efforts.

The white-throated guenons were seized as they were being smuggled out of Africa (Image: MONKEY WORLD)

Monkey World has already worked with Lebanese officials to rescue a chimpanzee called Kiki (Image: MONKEY WORLD)

Lebanese authorities are putting a lot of effort into protecting endangered species (Image: MONKEY WORLD)

“I am pleased that Monkey World was able to assist the Lebanese government and Animals Lebanon to rescue and rehabilitate these incredibly rare monkeys,” she said.

“Monkey World exists to assist governments around the globe to stop the smuggling of primates from the wild.

Lebanese authorities are putting a lot of effort into protecting endangered species, and organisations such as Monkey World and Animals Lebanon are here to support their efforts by caring for the refugees of the black market trade.”

Monkey World was set up in 1987 by the late Jim Cronin to provide a permanent stable home for abused Spanish chimpanzees.

His widow, Dr Alison Cronin, continues to work with foreign governments worldwide to stop the illegal smuggling of primates from Africa, Asia and South America.